Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 170
श्रद्धयाभीष्टफलदं चतुर्वर्गसमृद्धिकृत् । सकृज्जपादवाप्नोति ह्येकक्रतुफलंमुने
śraddhayābhīṣṭaphaladaṃ caturvargasamṛddhikṛt | sakṛjjapādavāpnoti hyekakratuphalaṃmune
اے مُنی! یہ جپ اگر श्रद्धا (ایمان) کے ساتھ کیا جائے تو مطلوبہ پھل عطا کرتا ہے اور دھرم، ارتھ، کام اور موکش—چاروں پرُشارتھ میں افزونی بخشتا ہے؛ اسے ایک بار بھی پڑھ لینے سے ایک کرتو یَجْیَ کے برابر پُنّیہ حاصل ہوتا ہے۔
Skanda (deduced from Kāśīkhaṇḍa dialogue context)
Tirtha: Gaṅgā in Kāśī (implied)
Type: ghat
Listener: A sage (muni)
Scene: A devotee seated on a Kāśī ghāṭa at dawn, hands in japa-mudrā, while subtle yajña-flames and Vedic symbols appear as luminous overlays, indicating ‘kratu-phala’ arising from a single recitation.
FAQs
Faithful japa is portrayed as a powerful dharmic act that can equal the merit of major ritual sacrifice.
The broader context is Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) and the sanctity of Gaṅgā-centered practice within Kāśīkhaṇḍa.
Japa (recitation) even once, performed with śraddhā, is prescribed as highly meritorious.